Melissa’s describes herself as a “perpetual kid, tinkerer, admirer of unique objects and open-minded people”. She wishes she lived in Japan but instead she lives in sunny San Diego, California with her life partner, Paul. They have just moved and are currently fixing up a 1920's Moorish revival home, which is very different from her 70's apartment I am featuring in this post.

What caught my eye the first time I saw it was the beautiful retro look and the fact that it looked so amazingly organized. Melissa has successfully managed to coexist with her many collections and display them in a balanced manner so that the living space still looks grown up but hasn’t lost the fun edge. She is a fan of “tacky old junk”, she makes and collects dolls and doll houses (check out her blog for this), she also collects vintage memorabilia, toys and candy (spot the Japan snacks box she has in storage).

Melissa proudly told me that she takes after her dad when it comes to being hands on around the home – “My dad was always building structures and furniture, so he was a good role model for ingenuity and thriftiness!“

Among others she picked as favourites the vintage memorabilia from her great-grandparents' restaurant (established during prohibition). My favourites are the vintage armoir in the living room and the bedroom (I've got a soft spot for four poster beds and bold colour combinations). I wonder if I could have the armoir now that they’ve moved on to a different style of décor :)

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